Twists
by evellaspeidel
Summary: The story of the next generation as told through the diary of a new character and is full of plenty of twists.


18 May

Dear Diary,

I ripped out all the other pages in this journal because my old life is being torn away from me. Everything is changing for me and I'll be starting fresh. Like a phoenix reborn from the ashes, I am reborn a new girl in a new life. Not literally, of course. Only the Avatar is reincarnated. I hope I will be able to spread my wings and soar once more, but it'll take some getting used to. I'd never anticipated such a momentous change. Yesterday my life was perfectly normal. I rose before the sun as I have done for years now and walked into the woods near my house and continued on until I came to a clearing. There I wait for the sun to rise, prostrate on the damp grass. I rise with the sun, the greatest source of firebending to form a spiritual connect to enhance my bending. I learn as I watch, still in awe after all these years, as the sun's glorious power lights the world, its fire bringing light to all creation. I can see what true firebending is and be a part of it. I had started this, meditation, let's us say, after learning about the Sun Warriors. Since I cannot learn from the original firebenders, the dragons, as they did, I can at least study the source of fire. After the sunrise, I collected water from the stream, my daily chore, and went home. I ate breakfast, as always, then washed up, dressed properly and left for school, with Mai Lin, Shoji, and Sapphire in tow.

Our school is in a small village a couple of miles away. Most of the attendees live, like us, on small farms on the outskirts of town, though a few do live in the village, which is really just clusters of houses and shops surrounding a marketplace that doubles as a square with a statue of Fire Lord Zuko in the center. It's not much, but it's what I know. I love having animals everywhere, hearing farmers haggle with each other in the marketplace, and the small festivals held during each season. And even though its annoying, I love having everyone know me, so I never feel alone. I'm sure the Royal Caldera City is much different; bigger, grander, imposing, unfriendly, and scary compared to our village. I must ask my mother. She knows.

My mother was born and raised there, but left to marry my father. She said she always felt like an outcast. August Lin was the only non-bender in prominent family of firebenders. Mother said she didn't take to any other defensive discipline taught either, and she buried herself in books. My parents met in a library. He was quite the scholar. Like her, Lee Kwan was a non-bender. He was also an orphan, raised by a friend of his parents. They ran off together. Soon after, I was born.

I was followed by three more, but I was the only bender. Soon after my birth, my mother reconciled with her parents and every summer we visit them. We are planning to leave next week. Back to the story. After school was over, I went to the town square for the daily firebending lesson. I teach the younger students as I have already learned all I can from our master. On the long walk home, I dawdled a bit, wandering off the path, exploring, climbing trees. My school bag lay in a clump of grasses by the river. I lay outstretched beside it, basking in the splendor of the sunny day. Then I hear some shouts.

"Ember! Ember!" I jumped up, brushed the dirt off my clothing, grabbed my bag and ran out of the glen. Shoji and Sapphire raced up the road away from me.

I called out, "Shoji, Sapph, what is it?" I was slightly panicked.

They turned around and jogged back down to me. "Mom has been looking for you."

We headed back together. She's probably just worried because I was late. I walked in, dumped my bag on the dirt floor, slipped off my shoes, snagged some of the fire flakes Mai Lin was eating on the couch while she did her schoolwork, and strolled into the kitchen.

My parents were both seated at the table, hands folded, expressions sober. I didn't notice it then, but a scroll was clutched in my mother's hand. My father motioned to an empty chair. I sat down, wondering what I had done. Nothing recently. Maybe they found out about the time I fed a badger frog fire gummies and released it in our classroom, where it hopped about, breathing fire.

That was Jin's idea though, just for the record. She's a friend of mine. She and her older brother, Taio, who is my age, used to live in the Earth Kingdom. Their parents had grown up in the colonies there, but after the war ended, most colonists came back to the Fire Nation. Jin and Taio's parents stayed. They settled in a small Earth Kingdom town that had sprung up in an abandoned colony nearby, where Taio was born. Soon after, they were chased out when the townspeople discovered that they were from the Fire Nation, even though only the mother was a firebender. This became a pattern over the next few years. By the time they decided to move back to the Fire Nation, Taio was five, Jin three. It had become impossible to stay as Jin had proven herself to be a firebender. Even now, she doesn't like to firebend much. I don't know how she can ignore this part of herself.

Back to the story. My dad glanced nervously at my mom, who smiled encouragingly, then cleared his throat and began to speak.

"Ember, your mother received a letter from her parents, your grandparents, asking you-"

"Perhaps she should read it," my mother suggested without as if I wasn't in the room. She passed me the scroll.

I felt my body tense as I read the words. Go study at the Royal Firebending Academy for Girls? It was the chance of the lifetime. How could I not go? How could I leave? But I knew I wanted to go. I knew I would miss my family and friends, but I was going. I asked my parents if I could. They looked sad, but also as if they were already resigned to this future. My brother and sisters, when we told them later, were much more upset. Shoji and Sapph in tears, Mai Lin showing how betrayed she felt with her cold anger. I hugged the younger two, assuring them I wasn't leaving them yet. Mai Lin had already left.

So now when we all pack for our annual vacation to our grandparents' home on Ember Island, I will be packing everything. My room will look so lonely with only Mai Lin's things in it, but my new one will be just as forlorn without her. I wonder what it will look like. I'll find out too soon. Right now I;ll treasure the last of my time here.

Love,

Ember Kwan


End file.
